DUI Arrests: Victimless Pre-crime?

Written by Gregory Monte.

I know that this is a controversial topic – which is why I have avoided mentioning it on this blog.

Until today, of course.

I finally decided to bring it up after reading an article called Drunk-Driving And Fake-Science.  I realize that it is hard to feel sorry for individuals arrested for DUI considering the real tragedy of drunk driving deaths, but I was surprised to find out that thousands of drivers are unfairly charged with this “crime.”

How is this possible?

According to the article cited above:

• “.. the New York Times has published a massive investigation that shows that the science behind the breathalyzer is bogus. Tens of thousands of arrests have been wrong.”
• “Something called the Intoxilyzer 8000 was tested in Vermont in 2005 and produced inaccurate results in almost every test.” 

The state of New Jersey is even faced with the dismissal of countless DUI convictions as a result of the inaccuracy of the breathalyzers used by police:

“The state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that more 20,000 breath tests were not admissible, raising the possibility that tens of thousands of DWI cases could be overturned … [because] …  the machines used to administer the tests were not properly calibrated.”

If you think there is no possible way that DUI can be either victimless or a type of pre-crime, consider the following words from a post on LewRockwell.com:

“Just as every husband needs a wife, every child needs a parent, and every teacher needs a pupil, so every crime needs a victim. Not a potential victim or possible victim or a supposed victim, but an actual victim.”

I will conclude with three final points:

• If a driver is so impaired that he crashes his car and either kills/injures someone or damages property, then there is a victim. 
• If he is able to drive home safely and park in his driveway, there are no victims.
• If a police officer arrests a driver for DUI before his actions cause any harm or damage, this sounds a lot like pre-crime (an arrest without a victim).